Snorkling?

[thisisjl]

We are going on our first cruise Jan 10-17 ports - Grand Turk, Tortola, St. Maarten, Half Moon Cay on the HAL Eurodam.

 

I am interested in trying snorkling for the first time, just wondering which of these ports would be the best for looking for good snorkling?

[Bethany Beach]

We are avid snorkelers and sometimes cruisers, although we prefer land vacations for our snorkeling trips. We have been to many islands in the Caribbean and find the snorkeling in the British Virgin Islands to be some of the best in the Caribbean. Often it depends on the conditions at the day/time you happen to be in the water - rain, choppy water, etc. Also, you might find the water a bit chilly in January (I couldnt' tell where you live). If you are from the north, you will be able to tolerate a colder water temperature (usually). I would check the average water temps for the places to which you are going before you make up your mind. The earliest in the year that we were there was late February and although we snorkeled in every port we went to, we noticed that the water was defiinitely on the cooler side.

 

If you plan to take ship excursions, then I recommend Tortola. The ship excursion will probably take you to the Caves because it is one of the closest places to get to and has decent snorkeling. We haven't snorkeled in St. Maarten (isn't known for its snorkeling). Did snorkel in Provo in Turks & Caicos and had pretty good snorkeling at one spot; however the hurricanes that went through there this year might have done a number on the reefs. Have never been to Half Moon Cay.

 

Here are some suggestions from someone who remembers our first snorkeling experience in Bermuda on a ship excursion and this year took a cruise to the S. Carib and snorkeled in 9 ports, all but one on ship excursions. Unfortunately, often these excursions are packed. If you plan to snorkel more than once, you might want to consider buying a mask/snorkel to take with you to make sure that the mask fits you correctly and that the snorkel has a purge valve to keep the water from going down the snorkel if the water is a little choppy. When I see them take the snorkels out of the bucket of water and see people put the snorkels in their mouths, it makes you stop and think about who last had that snorkel in his/her mouth. Of course, people by the hundreds do this every day without incident. I did at first too. It isn't always practical to buy your own equipment if you don't think you will ever snorkel again.

 

Second, if the boat that you getting on appears to be full of people, ask where on the boat you will entering the water (usually the back). Sit as near to there as possible, or a good deal of your snorkel time will be waiting for people to get off the boat. That is very frustrating.

 

It can be difficult to walk with the fins on. If you are given fins with a full foot, fold the back of the rubber heel down so it is underneath the fin. Then, when you are in the water, it is easy to lift up your foot, slip on the fin, and snap back the rubber. Practice doing that while you are sitting waiting to get to the snorkel spot. They will distribute equipment on the way there.

 

Ask for flotation devices even if you are good swimmers. You probably won't be diving down the first time you snorkel and the flotation device allows you to easily rest "standing" in the water so you can clear your mask/snorkel if you need to or just be more comfortable talking to your snorkel buddy.

 

If you get lucky, someone on the boat or a fellow passenger will help you if you are having some trouble. If your mask leaks, don't just deal with it. Swim back to the boat and ask for another mask or help in getting it to fit correctly.

 

I saw so many people on our cruise this year who were trying snorkeling for the first time that were given no instruction, were choking, mask leaking, etc., and nobody on the ship bothered to help them. In some cases, they just told them to get back on the boat. I tried to help a few people but it really irritated me because these people will probably never try snorkeling ever again and it can be great fun once you get the hang of just relaxing and breathing normally. That is why having a mask and snorkel that is half decent makes all the difference in the world.

 

The tendency is to breathe too fast or shallow. Try to relax and take full breaths - give yourself a chance to get used to breathing before you take off away too far from the ship.

 

In some cases, someone from the boat will get in the water with people to show them where to go. Sometimes, you are just told where to go and they will whistle when it is time to get back on the boat.

[OHCruiser]

We sailed on the Eurodam recently, and our snorkeling on Grand Turk was wonderful. We had 2 "guides"--one in full scuba gear and one on a life ring in snorkeling gear. The seas were a bit rough and churned up where they usually take people, so they motored around to the other side of the island and took a very near the Puerto Rican Trench (some ungodly rift in the ocean bottom that goes down hundreds of feet!).

 

We also snorkeled on Half Moon Cay. They took us out to an area of 3 different reefs and the fish & coral were amazing. The staff wasn't very attentive (we were a small group of 8, or so.), but it was very enjoyable.

 

I understand that there are areas off HMC that you can snorkel on your own by walking out from the beach. We'd do it again in a minute.

 

We travel with thin skin-full length rashguards, masks, dry snorkels, and short travel fins in a large mesh dive bag--best luggage we packed! I rinsed them in the tub with some neoprene shampoo and hung them on the balcony or line in the tub and all was well.

 

Have fun!

[thisisjl]

We are from Minnesota where the current temperature is a balmy (haha) 1 degrees with a windchill of -8. Yeah we aren't doing much swimming here now ice fishing maybe but that's about all. When you say the water is cooler though what temperature are we talking about? Maybe it's something left for the future if we make it back down on another cruise? I just want to be able to experience something that we can't do around here, I don't want to spend my entire vacation sitting on a beach or walking through towns I want to have some experiences if that makes sense.

[shelling4life]

Definately try snorkeling. Once you have you will always dream to do it again. Bring a disposeable underwater camera. Low expense, but oh so much fun!!!

[Host Star]

don't miss out.. definitely try snorkeling on your jan. cruise... the only port I would skip for snorkeling is St. Martin...but any one of the others you will enjoy.. take the ship's excursion for your first experience...

[Bethany Beach]

I certainly didn't mean to scare you off by mentioning the cooler water - everyone went in and only one couple had shortie wet suits. We just noticed that the water was a LITTLE cooler than in May/June and that after 45 minutes, we were ready to get out of the water. It seemed that most of the people on our cruise were from Canada, and they thought the water was extremely warm. You will be fine.

 

I also agree that no matter where you choose to try snorkeling - do try it. My husband isn't the best swimmer and not that comfortable in the water. The first time he tried it in Bermuda, the boat took us too far out and dropped us in rough waters. It wasn't the best experience. But, when we went to the Caribbean he tried it again and now that is the only reason we go on vacations to the islands.

 

Also, most of the excursions are going to take you out on a boat and should be taking you to places that are known to have decent snorkeling. It is not as easy to find good snorkeling directly from the shore although it can be found. If you aren't 100 percent sure of the snorkeling excursions, you can always pick an excursion that takes you to a beach for the day that says there is snorkeling from the shore. The reef/fish life might not be as good, but you would at least get to try it out. If you really liked it, perhaps you could get in on a snorkeling excursion later on your cruise if there is still space.

 

One more thing - be sure to wear your bathing suits. I was surprised that a few people actually brought their suits with them expecting to change on the boat. One boat didn't even have a bathroom on board so they couldn't change so just sat there the whole time.

[thisisjl]

I went to sign up for an excursion and found out I'm a day late they cut off the online booking 5 days in advance and I leave on Sat sooo I guess I wait until I get to the ship hopefully I meet up with some nice folks that are intersted in doing it together (it's a chartered cruise and I'm expecting manyof the same people that were on vacation with us in Mexico last year to be in attendence). DH won't go snorkling he's afraid he'll become another Steve Irwin. :-(

[jessie073]

We sailed on the Eurodam recently, and our snorkeling on Grand Turk was wonderful. We had 2 "guides"--one in full scuba gear and one on a life ring in snorkeling gear. The seas were a bit rough and churned up where they usually take people, so they motored around to the other side of the island and took a very near the Puerto Rican Trench (some ungodly rift in the ocean bottom that goes down hundreds of feet!).

 

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OHCruiser -we are going to Grand Turk for the first time in March and interested in doing some snorkeling. Who did you use for your tour? Thank you